What Your ERG Members Still Won’t Tell You — And Why It Matters More in 2026
In January 2022, I published an article titled “What Your ERG Members Won’t Tell You.” It captured a truth many organizations were only beginning to confront: Employee Resource Group leaders were carrying far more emotional, cultural, and organizational labor than most executives could see.
Four years later, that truth hasn’t faded.
It has intensified.
ERGs now operate in more visible, more politicized, and more high-stakes workplace environments — yet many are still structured as if they are informal, extracurricular communities rather than what they truly are: critical leadership and insight engines inside modern organizations.
Employee Resource Groups are commonly described as identity-based communities formed around race, gender, ability, life stage, or lived experience. But that definition misses something essential. Even employees who never attend an ERG meeting are shaped by what those groups surface, advocate for, and change.
If you only observe ERGs from the outside, they may look social.
From the inside, they are doing some of the most important culture and retention work in your company.
Over the years, ERG leaders have signaled the same six realities—often quietly, often while exhausted. Here’s what they are really telling us.
1 “I am exhausted.”
ERG leaders are not your DEI team. When volunteer employees are asked to carry the emotional and operational labor of inclusion without proper infrastructure, burnout is inevitable. A small stipend without workload relief does not create sustainability.
What this signals: Your organization is relying on ERGs instead of supporting them.
What to do: Fund ERGs properly, assign operational support, and integrate them into your DEI and people strategy.
2 “This isn’t my day job.”
Some ERG leaders want to grow into people leadership, DEI, or strategy roles. Others simply want their leadership to count. When organizations ignore that pipeline, they lose some of their most capable talent.
What to do: Create development pathways and link ERG leadership to succession planning.
3 “Tell that to my manager.”
When ERG work isn’t acknowledged in performance reviews, it sends a clear message: this leadership doesn’t matter.
What to do: Train people managers to recognize ERG engagement as a legitimate leadership and development experience.
4 “I’m not sure this is appreciated.”
ERGs are often asked to contribute to recruiting, branding, and culture — but excluded from real decision-making.
What to do: Include ERGs in strategic initiatives and reward them with access, visibility, and growth opportunities.
5 “We wish we had more data.”
ERG leaders are expected to drive impact without insight into retention, engagement, or workforce trends.
What to do: Share relevant data so ERGs can align their efforts with real organizational needs.
6 “I wonder how other companies are doing this.”
ERG leadership can be isolating without benchmarks and peer support.
What to do: Invest in external ERG communities, partnerships, and learning spaces.
Why Community Still Matters
In the summer of 2021, just after I left corporate America, I launched the All Things ERG Monthly Community Call because one need kept showing up everywhere I went: ERG leaders needed a place to think, compare notes, and breathe — across companies, not just inside them.
What started as a simple cross-company space for ERG leaders is still growing five years later for the same reason it began:
the work is heavy, and no one should have to do it alone.
The questions ERG leaders are asking today are more complex. The stakes are higher. But the need for connection, shared learning, and collective leadership has never gone away.
Where EQImindset Comes In
ERGs do not struggle because people don’t care.
They struggle when they are asked to lead without structure.
Through EQImindset, I partner with HR, DEI, and ERG oversight teams to design ERG ecosystems that are aligned, resourced, and built for long-term impact — not just short-term engagement.
If this article resonates, it’s likely because your organization — or your ERG — is ready for that next level of maturity.